on those parts of their religion which are in agreement with Christianity, and who thus belong to Christ without knowing it.” Concerning the unevangelized, our spiritual grandfather John Wesley once wrote, “We have great reason to hope, although they lived among the heathen, yet [many of them] were quite of another spirit, being taught of God, by his inward voice, all the essentials of true religion.” Lewis and Wesley would agree that there are Christians who do not know they are Christians. 2. Scripture—What does the Bible say about it? Exclusivists probably have an easier time than the other two in finding Scripture to verify their position. The declarations of Jesus himself in John 14:6 (“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”) and of Peter in Acts 4:12 (“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given under Heaven by which we must be saved”) are well-known to all Christians. While inclusivists do not doubt that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith, they also find a basis for what could be called “anonymous Christianity” in the Bible. The Bible declares that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. However, the Bible does not limit that salvation to one segment of history. As theologian Clark
Pinnock wrote, “God has been at work saving human beings before Jesus was born and does so where Jesus has not been named. The patriarch Abraham was justified by faith without knowing Jesus, and Paul holds him up as a model believer for us all, even though he never heard the gospel (see Romans 4:1-25).” Inclusivism places the focus of salvation upon the work of Jesus Christ and his mercy, not necessarily upon our response to it. 3. Reason—What does rational thinking conclude? While we may approach rationalism differently, we can agree that our opinions of pluralism must logically agree with our corollary beliefs about God, sin and salvation. If we believe that God desires for all people to be saved, then we would reject the notion that large groups of humans in history had no chance of being saved. If we believe that God is loving and merciful, we would find it hard to comprehend him sentencing people to judgment without providing them an opportunity to at least choose or reject the gospel. Believing that people are precluded from the Kingdom of God when many haven’t had the same opportunities that we’ve had is akin to Calvinist predestination. I cannot believe that God would allow that to happen for the same reason that I don’t believe he chooses some to be saved and rejects others.
Putting Our Beliefs Into Practice
Here are some tips to living our faith in a pluralistic setting. 1. Remember that inclusivism is not syncretism. Showing respect to other religious faiths does not mean that we have to form a new religion out of the old ones. It does not mean that we have to compromise our beliefs. Respect is a two-way street. If we show respect for our neighbour’s belief system, then it is appropriate that our own faith is presented completely. Our neighbour will appreciate that we are steadfast in our convictions. We should never be ashamed of our faith, but we should not suppose that acting spiritually superior to others is a good way to win them to Christ. 2. Talk to people of other faiths. Just as our beliefs inform our behaviour, conversely the things we do and people we meet influence what we believe. As my physical environment has changed, my notions about pluralism have advanced. Some might say that is a bad thing and that I have been unduly influenced by my culture. I disagree. I believe that all theology is contextual. We often do not know what we ought to believe until we put it into practice in the real world. It is easy to judge Muslims harshly when we have never taken the time to get to know one. 3. Repent of any prejudice. It is shocking how much racism and xenophobia still exists in the world. We are not immune from it in the Church. I am convinced that the effectiveness we have in witnessing to people from other cultures and religions is often directly related to the biases we hold. Hatred and prejudice are sins and must be eradicated. No person carrying those feelings can be successful in sharing the love of Christ. 4. Give people freedom. Our job isn’t to change people. Only God can do that. We are called to witness, by our words and our actions, to what Christ has done for us. If our neighbour rejects the gospel, that is not our responsibility. That is sometimes hard for Christians to accept. We want to win the entire world, but we must leave people in God’s hands and allow him to deal with them. Salvationist I July 2011 I 23